Former Police Officer Acquitted of Misconduct Charges After Taking Selfies at Teenager's Death Scene
A former police officer who took selfies while guarding the scene of a teenager's death has been cleared of misconduct in a public office, following a judge's ruling at Manchester Crown Court. Ryan Connolly, 41, was found not guilty of four charges after Recorder of Manchester Judge Nicholas Dean KC discharged the jury partway through his trial.
Judge Rules Evidence Insufficient for Conviction
Judge Dean determined that the prosecution's evidence was insufficient to prove that Mr Connolly committed misconduct, deeming it legally impermissible for a jury to consider verdicts. Not guilty verdicts were formally recorded on Friday, the fifth day of proceedings.
"My conclusion is the Crown cannot demonstrate the serious misconduct here, that the evidence is incapable of demonstrating serious misconduct, so the jury could not reach a conclusion so that Mr Connolly was guilty of misconduct in a public office," Judge Dean told the court.
Prosecutors have until Monday to consider whether to appeal against the ruling, adding potential uncertainty to the case's final outcome.
Details of the Controversial Incident
Jurors heard that Connolly, a constable with Merseyside Police, took selfies—including one lying on the grass—when he was deployed to guard a cordon after 16-year-old Daniel Gee-Jamieson was killed in Belle Vale, Liverpool, in 2018. The incident occurred while Connolly was on duty, raising serious questions about professional conduct.
More than 50 photos were discovered in the sent folder of WhatsApp on his personal phone when he was arrested in February 2020. These images included pictures of vulnerable people detained at hospitals, as well as images of force systems and Connolly's colleagues.
Prosecution Arguments and Defense Claims
Opening the trial on Tuesday, prosecutor Peter Wilson stated: "The prosecution say he has wilfully misconducted himself by taking inappropriate photographs where, we say, there is no professional need to do so. He's then retained them and sent them on."
However, the court heard that with the exception of one photo sent to a supervising officer, there was no evidence of who Connolly sent the pictures to. No messages accompanying the images had been retrieved from the phone, complicating the prosecution's case.
The jury was informed that the defendant claimed the images were taken for work purposes, but the court heard they had not been uploaded to police systems. During the hearing, a note from one juror asked the court to explain why the defendant had taken the photos, adding: "What was he getting out of it?"
Legal Context and Upcoming Sentencing
Judge Dean explained to jurors that misconduct in a public office is one of the few remaining common law offences that is hard to define and is often a form of corruption. He gave the example of police officers sometimes being prosecuted for tipping off criminals about police investigations for money—but nothing like that had been suggested in Connolly's case.
Despite being cleared of misconduct, Connolly, from Huyton, Merseyside, will return to the same court on Monday to be sentenced for three counts of possession of extreme pornographic images, which he previously admitted. He was formally dismissed in 2021 by Merseyside Police, who described his behaviour as "deplorable."
A misconduct hearing revealed that other images found on his phone were racist, homophobic, and mocked disabled people. Additionally, messages showed he socialised with a known criminal, further tarnishing his professional record.
